Forums

Aloha all,
I was looking for some lesson ideas for earth and space science and I found a lesson called Stargazers in More Picture-Perfect Science Lessons by Karen Ansberry and Emily Morgan publish by NSTApress. Students are introduced to the wonders of the night sky and begin to ask questions about what they see. They observe stars and record their observations and questions. The featured books in this lesson include When I heard the Learn'd Astronomer by Walk Whitman, and Spots of Light: A Book About Stars by Dana Meachen Rau. Whitman's book is a story about a boy fascinated with the sky above. Rau's book explains the birth of stars, star colors, constellations, and galaxies. I like the use of the O-W-L (Observations, Wonderings, Learnings) chart in this lesson. This is the first time I've heard of an O-W-L chart. Blackline masters include handouts on different constellations like Canis Major, A take home parent letter explaining the star gazing assignment, and a Stargazers Flap Book that each student will make at the end of the unit. Just thought I'd share...

Dawn

Hi Dawn,
Thank you for bringing that to our attentions. I love the OWL advance organizer, too! It make sense for science and is a nice alternative to a KWL. I linked the book chapter for those wishing immediate access to the Stargazers.
The Picture-Perfect ladies use the OWL chart in some of their other lessons, too!

Aloha Dawn, I like the idea of the O-W-L (Observations. Wonderings, Learnings) chart. This actually makes more sense than a KWL chart especially in science. Many students nowadays lack background knowledge to the extent that using a KWL chart is pointless at times. The O-W-L chart will give them the opportunity to write their observations, and then come up with questions they may have, and entice their curiosity to research and find answers to their questions. I will certainly use this in my next lesson and see how it works. By the way, did you have to purchase the book (More Picture-Perfect Science Lessons)? Or is that something that we can download for free? I also found some really good visuals in Scipack “Earth, Sun, and Moon”: 1) Ships at sea – explains how sailors determined that Earth is a sphere based on their observations of how building and shores slowly descended or ascended near the horizon. 2) Another one shows how shadows appear in different lengths on flat and curved surfaces. Thank you for sharing!

Thanks for sharing this idea! I have only heard of OWL, but I never actually used that method and now I have a reason to implement it with students! I also love how this lesson lets the students actually go outside and explore and physically see what they are taught. I look forward to teaching about space science in the future.

Wow - I definitely learned something new today. I can see why O-W-L is much more appropriate for discovery and investigations in science. I am going to use O-W-L with my Kindergarten class when we talk about the moon and the different phases. This is much more effective than the K-W-L chart, especially in Kindergarten. Also I can't wait to look at the site you shared - I am hoping there are some star/space lessons that I can modify to teach to my Kindergartners. thank you for sharing this wonderful information with us!

Thanks for sharing information on OWL charts. I have only ever heard of KWL charts, but I can see how OWL charts could be much more useful for science. I am still working on my degree, but I will definitely be using an OWL chart when I have a classroom of my own.

Thanks for sharing the information on O-W-L charts. I am going to start implementing them into my lessons. Also thank you for sharing the great resources, the stargazers resource is great!

Thanks Dawn for the great ideas for teaching space science. I think teaching space science is a hard topic to teach because the students can't see it or touch it so I have to use a lot of visual aids and models. Thanks for the suggestion of the picture book I will definitely use it in my classroom. Helen

Hi Dawn and Carolyn, Thank you for the information about the Stargazers. I've added it to my library. I like the pictures in the sky page. I'm going to cut each constellation out, laminate it and put them all on a ring so the students can flip through them more easily and review them on their own. Thank you! Barbara

Dawn, Thanks for posting this resource! I think my students will really enjoy the page where they can use their imagination to create their own constellation. I also liked the pictures in the sky cards that tell the brief story about each constellation. This is a great resource!

Aloha everyone, As I was completing the “Solar System” scipack, I came across this great simulation “Journey to the Planet”. This simulation allows you to click on each planet and show you a close up of that planet along with valuable information such as the distance from Earth and Sun, and a probable interior of what the planet may look like. This is really cool to use in the classroom especially if you’re going to have students choose a planet to write about. Of course, there are other cool simulations and visuals that you can also use in the classroom. There is also a hands-on investigation "Flashlight Solar Energy Model" that I am attaching. It seems pretty easy to apply.

Attachments

Hands_On_Investigation_Flashlight_Solar_Energy_Model.docx (0.02 Mb)

Greetings Dawn, I think that the OWL chart is a great idea!!! I am in a school that does not get to much science due to the focus on High Stakes Testing. I would to see teachers fit more science in and I think that the OWL chart is a great start? Do you have any suggestions on how to spark more science in my school and on how to promote the use of the OWL chart? Many thanks, Anthony M. O'Bannon

Thank you for sharing about the OWL chart. I agree that often in science students lack the background knowledge to actually "know" something about a topic. I often find myself having my students go back and revise/clear up misconceptions about what they thought they knew. The replacement of the "know" section with "observations" makes much more sense when it comes to science. Thank you for sharing this important resource. Does anyone have any lessons/ideas for making a student model of the solar system? I have one classroom model of the solar system, but I would like for my students to engage in constructing their own.

OWL charts are a wonderful way to add literature into a science lesson. This semester, my science professors showed us a lesson that used an OWL chart. All the students in the class were familiar with KWL charts, so it was really interesting to see how the OWL chart was different and allowed for science talks.